Aren’t markets friggin’ fantastic? Last week I laid out these thoughts: “Our playbook for the next few weeks are along these lines….US markets will be smacked for the next 1-2 weeks, USD strengthens due to the hawkish rhetoric regarding tapering, commodities pull back and the USD 3 trn stimulus bill in the US doesn’t pass. […]

Moody’s said Thai banks are strong with 152.2% reserves, helps cushioning potential rise in NPLs. Finance Ministry will pump additional money into the economy system in 4Q to further improve the flagging economy amid the prolonged pandemic, said director-general of the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO). Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) has rejected speculation regarding the […]

Ah that wonderful September feeling where did you disappear to? Evergrande is all of the news at the moment, despite this being spread around the investment community for the past 5-6 months. And this is apparently what’s driving the markets on the way down. Our playbook for the next few weeks are along these lines….US […]

‘Rose of north’ set to bloom: Jab rates way behind target as oct 1 launch for latest sandbox nears. From Phuket to Koh Samui, the country is nervously navigating its way through a reopening of the tourism industry. Chiang Mai could be next to roll out its carpet to welcome back visitors near and far. […]

Look at the technology sector since GULF took more shares in INTUCH therefore controlling ADVANC (AIS). When you talk to those working at AIS, there’s already a shift with the management/employees working there (ie. less middle management Singaporeans). GULF will probably extract as much cash as possible from ADVANC/INTUCH, but then I wonder what happens […]

Debt restructuring to be extended: Period for some business sectors could be increased to 10-15 years. Debt restructuring periods offered to borrowers affected by the pandemic could be extended to more than 10 years, says Thai Bankers’ Association (TBA) chairman Payong Srivanich. Bangkok Post Four tourist towns: Chiang Mai, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chonburi, Petchaburi will […]

So what other positive stories are left? We have political “stability” for the time being. Commodities continue to hold, thus the equities may eventually start to show higher pricing, as we’re seeing with coal names today. Reopening domestically is continuing, next is an international reopening? This could be a longer/messier process but then again we […]

People in dark-red zones will not need to be fully vaccinated and/or pass a Covid test to dine in at eateries and restaurants in dark-red zones, latest announcement in the Royal Gazette. Thailand will enforce the e-service tax law from today, following in the footsteps of >60 countries around the globe which collect VAT from […]